The way I understood this conversation, some people have been discussing old system vs new system as a whole instead of these parameters madscientist mentioned. You can design a 20-ap-system where no character can ever do more than 3 actions per round. And a a 20-ap-system does not inevitably include speed as it was implemented. That's why Larian does not need to reduce the amount of ap to these low levels. Erasing speed from the stat list would have been sufficient.
Speed as a stat was omnipotent and it has gone with the new system, which most probably will be for the better.
Now why do some folks deem a 3-ap-system problematic?
- movement
- RNG
- spell design
Spending 1/3rd of your DPs sounds too costy for melee classes. Especially if you have some "normal" hit chances like 70%. This would mean that, in most situations, a melee combatant had to move for 1 ap, and then a 30% chance to deal half damage each round. The chance of dealing none is rather realistic.
I find this spectrum of possibilities too diametrical and the outcome too chaotic.
Some reasonable system would allow for each character to
- move freely over short distances without heavy punishment (I don't mean free of charge)
- attack up to 5 times per round
- cast up to 3 cheap spells per round (mind the cooldowns, though)
Such a system could be alike the following:
- 10 ap per round, (with carry over, maximum is 15 points)
- a normal attack costs 2 ap
- few, the cheapest and least useful, spells cost 3-4 ap; most spells cost 6-8 ap
